Therapy
by DJ The Serendipitous
Summary: Allen Walker comes to the Black Order and finds that his long lost elder sister already resides there. However, someone's out to ruin the happiness of the Walker siblings and sides with the enemy. Will Vicky manage to keep her loved ones away from harm?
1. Remember Her Face

**Just for shits and giggles.**

**~Don't own D. Gray-Man~**

**Chapter 1: Remember Her Face**

Allen sat on the edge of his bed, trying to see in the faint light that came from the moonlight cascading through his window. What time was it? Had to be late. He rubbed absently at his left eye, wincing at how raw it felt. He'd had that dream again. The one about his real family – no, scratch that. About his real sister. He had been dreaming about his sister. Her red hair and the smile that had been all his when they were children.

She had been older then him by only a couple of years, but had treated him like her own child since their own mother had neglected them. She had watched over him with stern green eyes, keeping him out of sight and out of harm. It had been years since he last saw her. There'd been no contact. He wasn't even sure if she was still alive.

So why was he dreaming about her now?

He frowned slightly and looked around, searching for Timcampy of all things. He had to get his mind off her. He'd initially thought of searching for her when his master had told him to escapade off to the Black Order, but even he knew it was impossible to find her. He wasn't that naïve. So he had given up. What was the point, anyway? She was probably dead somewhere in a pauper's grave…

But his dream was so real…

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and laid back down. His eyes, however, were wide open and he stared at the brick wall, curled up half way into a ball. His silver hair glinted in the light as he clenched the blanket in his fist. He was starting to forget her face…

Lenalee was the first to notice the white haired boy's strange behavior. She pursed her pink lips thoughtfully as she watched him poke at his food, her own fork lying forgotten in her hands. "Allen, is there something wrong?" She asked, her legs tucked neatly to the side underneath the table. "You haven't eaten breakfast at all." She pushed back a long strand of hair from her pig tails as she peered at him.

Allen offered her a small smile before turning back to his food. "I'm fine, Lenalee. Just not hungry." He yawned, covering his mouth.

"Well that's just odd."

They both looked up to see Lavi and Kanda come to sit next to them. It was clearly apparent that Lavi had all but dragged Kanda over, from the angry scowl on the swordman's face. The happier of the two was pushed away violently as they came closer.

"You're never not hungry." Lavi pointed out, plopping down next to Allen. "You're like the incredible never ending well. You just suck everything in." He poked the younger boy's stomach and made a sucking in noise.

Lenalee giggled and Allen's smile brightened a bit. Kanda ignored them, as per usual.

"It's nothing guys, really." Allen assured them, pushing Lavi off half heartedly. "I just didn't sleep well last night."

"You here that? Beansprout had a nightmare. Can we all get on with our lives now?" Kanda snapped glaring at the wall to the side of them.

Lenalee frowned. "That's not very nice." She'd tried her hardest to keep Kanda and Allen from killing each other, however difficult the task turned out to be.

Kanda snorted.

Allen stared at his food as he said quietly. "It wasn't a nightmare."

"So…if it wasn't a nightmare…" Lavi tapped his fork on his plate, cupping his cheek with his other hand. "Then it was a good dream, right?"

Allen nodded.

"So why so sad?" Lenalee asked, trying to see Allen's eyes.

"I was…I was dreaming about my sister…my biological sister…" Allen said, almost sheepishly.

"Oh. Do you miss her?" Lenalee asked kindly.

"I haven't seen her since before I met Mana." Allen explained. "She was kinda the one who took care of me before that. I don't even know if she's alive now."

"And you're having dreams about her?" Lavi asked.

"For a week now…" Allen agreed, putting his head in his hands.

"What's her name? Maybe one of us knows her." Lenalee asked helpfully.

Allen smiled a little. "Unlikely, but her name is Victoria Walker."

Kanda froze. "You've got to be kidding me…" He groaned.

Lavi had a series of emotions playing about his face. First, recognition. Then, shock. Then humor. Humor and shock battled it out for a bit. Humor won. He busted up laughing.

Allen shot up. "What? You guys know her?"

Lenalee smiled. "She's an exorcist here, Allen. But she goes by Vicky."

"I wouldn't make the connection…" Lavi studied Allen. "Probably because her hair's mostly red."

"So was mine before I was cursed." Allen said excitedly. "Where is she? You have to tell me!" He stood immediately.

"Chill out!" Kanda snapped, not looking at him. "She's on a mission."

Lavi nudged Kanda and snickered as Kanda punched his arm temperamentally.

"What's with him?" Allen asked, giving Kanda an odd look. "Is there something I don't know? Tell me everything about her!" He turned to Lenalee.

"Well," She started. "She's short. She has two types of innocence. Kind of like General Cross, actually. She's been a great asset to the Black Order and she's been here for…six years now? Hmm…She did mention a younger brother occasionally, didn't she Kanda?"

Kanda grunted noncommittally.

Lavi smirked. "Tell him the best part, Lenalee. He's gonna find out anyway."

Kanda punched Lavi harder. "Shut up, Rabbit!" He hissed.

Allen turned to Lavi. "What? Tell me!"

"Well…" Lenalee smiled a bit. "She and Kanda are…an item, you could say."

Kanda stood up and left without a word.

Lavi laughed. "That was so amazing!" He took off in an opposite direction, still chuckling.

Allen couldn't bring his jaw back to his face. "What…?" He asked weakly. "With…him…?"

"I'm afraid so." She nodded.

"That's not my sister."

Lenalee laughed a little. "But!" She leaned in closer. "And don't tell anyone I told you this, but word has it that Lavi likes her too, but he won't admit it because he's the Bookman's apprentice and because Kanda's very protective."

"Wow, you know all the gossip, don't you?" Allen asked, awed.

"I do." Lenalee said, somewhat smugly. "And because of it, I have good news. She should be arriving today!"

"What was she sent to do?" Allen asked, curious. This all seemed too good to be true.

"One of our exorcists got involved with a Russian mob out in the middle of Siberia. Seems they had some innocence that they were unwilling to give up and…negotiations fell through. Vicky was sent to clean up the mess." Lenalee looked up and found a clock. "I need to go see my brother, but I'll find you when I get word she's here. And then you can see for sure." She stood and squeezed his shoulder companionably – the right one. "I'm so happy for you Allen." She said and left.

"Yeah…" Allen said to the floor. "If it's really her, I will be too…"

There wasn't enough to do for Allen. He spent half the day doing absolutely nothing but counting how push ups he could do in an hour on each arm. Then he counted how many footsteps he heard outside his door. When he actually tried to go out of his room, he wandered around in a circle and then retreated, unsure what to do with himself. He tried not to think too hard, for fear that doubts would plague his thoughts. What if it really wasn't her? What if she didn't want to see him? What if she was dead now? He sighed, trying to conjure up a picture of her face again. He couldn't and that disturbed him now more then ever.

There was a knock on the door.

"Co-" He started to say.

The door slammed open, the entire door frame rocking on its hinges.

"Come on!" Lenalee gestured hurriedly for him to get out of his room. "She's here! Kanda and Lavi are seeing her right now!"

Allen jumped up and followed the girl exorcist, his heart pounding in his throat. It felt like his blood was clotting as he ran; like he couldn't run fast enough. This was it. His moment of truth.

There was a large welcome party for Vicky Walker, and she almost hated it. If she didn't consider these people family, she would've told them all to get lost. She leaned heavily on Kanda, glad he was there for support. Oh, how she hurt. She held on to her bruised and broken ribs as she smiled at people and put their fears about her condition at ease.

"Where's Moriko?" Lavi asked from her left.

She smiled at him briefly at her friend. "Oh I'm sorry, Cyclops. Am I not good enough for ya?"

"Aw Vicky…" He pouted. "That's not fair…"

"Actually, I'd like to know where she is too." Kanda said darkly. "So I can run my sword through her and watch her bleed… They send you to clean up too many of her messes." He held onto her possessively, glaring towards the way he'd seen the scrawny girl escape to. No one hurt Vicky on his watch. No one.

Vicky looked up at him through red hair, with two white streaks in her bangs. "And that's why I love you." She glanced around as the crowd started to dissipate, most likely with other things they had to do. She kissed his cheek quickly before he could object and smiled slyly. "I missed you…"

Out of her peripheral vision, Lavi shifted uncomfortably and looked away.

Kanda was about to reply when Lenalee came rushing into the room. "Red Walker!"

"Little Lee!" Vicky smiled hugely but put up a hand before Lenalee could hug her. "Broken ribs."

Kanda growled angrily.

Lenalee took Vicky's hand. "It's so good to see you!"

"And you." Vicky squeezed her hand. "Who's your friend?" She glanced behind the younger asian girl. "He looks new." She smiled at him encouragingly.

The boy hesitated, several feet from them all. He rubbed his left arm with his right, the sleeve riding up a little to show the state of his arm.

Vicky's eyes became glued to it, suddenly aware of how familiar it looked. Her mouth became dry and, shocked, her head lifted up and she looked into bright green eyes. "A-Allen…?" She said weakly.

"Victoria…" He said, awed. "Sis, is that really you…?" He couldn't believe it. She'd known right off from his hand.

Vicky pulled away from Kanda walking towards him. "I tried looking for you everywhere in Europe…!"

"I'm sorry…I was training…" Allen felt tears come to his eyes as she came closer. "It really is you! I gave you that scar-" He traced a faint line next to her left eye. "-when we were kids!" He then looked sheepish. "I'm really sorry about that."

Vicky laughed, tears streaming down her face as she hugged him tightly. "Who cares about a damn scar? Allen, I've missed you!" She pulled back and gasped a bit. "A little…too much…"

"You're hurt!" Allen gasped as she started to sink to her knees.

"Obviously, moron-" Kanda started, walking up to Vicky.

Vicky hissed at him, "He's my brother!"

Kanda blinked a bit, looking a bit confused, and then rolled his eyes.

"Let's get you to the infirmary." Lenalee suggested as Kanda and Allen helped her up. She skipped ahead, leading the party through HQ.

Vicky ruffled Allen's hair. "I guess we'll…have to catch up later…" She winced as her ribs shifted.

Allen smiled at her and gave her arm a squeeze. "We will, sis."

Later that night, Allen took a vacant chair next to Vicky's bed in the infirmary, looking around the place. It was large, meant to accommodate a large number of people. Yet Vicky was the only one in here now. His eyes wandered down to her face, awed momentarily. How did he find her after all these years? He smiled a bit, unconsciously, as he pushed strands of hair out of his eyes. He could remember her face now. As a kid, she'd always had this way of pouting her way out of things. It had saved him on more then one occasion from bullies and other things. She also had a reckless courage about her that he'd admired. In fact, that's what had given her the scar next to her eye.

Something growled softly and he gasped, jumping up, as something cold and wet nudged at his hand.

It was a large white dog. No, it had to be a wolf. But it wasn't looking at him, choosing to stare straight ahead. It wagged its tail and whined softly, putting it's head on Vicky's bed.

Allen inspected it closer and realized it was blind, grey eyes staring straight ahead. It had large black crosses on its fur, like spots on a normal canine, wrapping around its back and belly. "What on earth?" Allen whispered.

The wolf cocked an ear towards him but staid put. However, Allen knew it was on guard. It was aware of him and it wasn't happy about his presence in the room.

The door opened and the wolf's head lifted completely off the bed, turning towards the door. It wagged its tail and its face split into what could only be described as a grin, tongue hanging out. The tail thumped against Allen and the bed wildly.

"She still unconscious?"

Allen looked up at Lavi as the wolf rushed to the older boy, almost knocking him over. "Yeah. Is he Vicky's?" He gestured at the wolf.

Lavi scratched behind the wolf's ears, smiling. "This is Xepher. He's actually innocence. And yes. He is Vicky's."

"Well at least he likes you." Allen said dryly, sitting again.

"Xepher may be innocence, but he's still an animal too." Lavi patted the wolf on the head. "Give him a chance to get to know you." He pulled up another chair and laughed softly as Xepher forced his head into the red haired boy's lap.

"Lenalee told me a rumor." Allen said quietly.

"Oh? She's full of those. People trust those innocent green eyes of hers." Lavi said, cradling Xepher's head in his hands. "Not like you, eh? Everyone thinks you steal babies! Baby stealer!"

Allen smiled a little. "She said you like Victoria."

Lavi froze, his muscles stiffening. "So she told you that one, huh." He said softly.

"Yeah." Allen looked worried. "Look, it was just a rumor so…"

"No, it's cool. People say dumb things." Lavi never looked up from Xepher. "I don't like your sister like that. She's just a neat person. Everyone likes her."

"I noticed that." Allen commented. "She's really popular, isn't she?"

"Yeah."

They sat in companionable silence for a minute.

Finally Allen exhaled. "I'm going to go sleep. You staying in here?"

"Xepher will wake her up if I don't." Lavi said ruefully. "Goodnight Allen."

Allen waved as he walked out, yawning.

Lavi waited until the door closed and then finally turned his gaze to Vicky. His look softened and his smile faded. He hesitated then softly touched the back of her hand with the pads of his fingers. Registering that there was no reaction to this impromptu motion, he leaned more forward and ran the back of his fingers over her cheek bone, marveling at how soft her skin was and how beautiful she looked in the low lamp light.

Vicky sighed in her sleep and her head turned towards his hand, her breath raising goose bumps on his arm.

Lavi withdrew his hand and clenched it, his look becoming bitterer then before.

Xepher nudged his knee and Lavi never glanced down as he petted the wolf.


	2. Perfect Disorder

**These are also on DA, username Cannibal-Monster. **

**Enjoy~!**

**~Do not own D. Gray-Man~**

**Chapter 2: Perfect Disorder**

Moriko stood next to a pillar, looking over the training area as she scanned through the crowd. Several men and women sweated and strained against each other in mock fights, tearing muscles to build them up and fight against The Earl. Moriko, herself, was extremely skinny and wiry – gangly like an awkward bird. She had mousy black hair that was stringy and never seemed washed, which she had tied up using a red ribbon. She carried around a Korean sword, forged by one of the greatest masters of all of Asia, so she liked to tell people. How sad that this was a lie. She stared at three men in particular, focusing her beady black eyes on them as one of them hacked at a boy with a sword and the other one watched in humor.

Lavi, Kanda, and little Allen Walker.

Moriko pressed her back against the pillar, turning away as she tried to calm her beating heart. How was it that she craved their attention above all else? Allen was a newer addition, but only because _she_ had him.

Moriko hated Victoria Walker with every fiber of her scrawny little being. Vicky had Kanda as her lover. She had Lavi, who pined after Vicky so absolutely (Oh, Moriko saw. And she envied.). Now that red haired whore had Allen, the cutest new addition to The Black Order, as her brother.

Moriko wished Vicky would die.

She grimaced now and walked closer to the shadows, keeping her head down as she passed where Kanda, Allen, and Lavi were. Moriko wouldn't even be here if it weren't her familial ties with Rouvelier. Though small, the were still obviously present and the head man himself, Malcolm C. Rouvelier, honored that as any family member should and promoted her as an ambassador, if you will. Mostly she stood about Head Quarters uselessly unless Komui sent her to Russia again. She always botched every mission, this latest one as an example. Sent to talk to the Czar of the time, she quickly found out just how unstable Russia was and fell in ill-favor with a group of radicalist known around HQ as the Russian Mafia. (It was the best way to explain them. They'd never identified themselves as anything but a group banned together for senseless violence.) As always, Vicky was sent to 'clean up' after Moriko and returned as a hero, with a large welcoming party and pats on the back, not to mention the special welcome the red haired witch received from Kanda later. Moriko, however, was scorned like a mongrel and kicked to the corner. Then Chief Komui would debrief her all of five minutes to realize that things were botched and his beloved exorcist Vicky would know more then Rouvelier's cousin twice removed, and send Moriko to her little corner again.

Moriko smiled bitterly as she came to a corridor less inhabited by humans. But this time, she hadn't told Chief Komui everything. She opened a door and stepped into her dark dank room. She shut the heavy wooden door and stepped across the cold floor to light a candle. Nervously, she licked her lips and looked around as she put her travel bag on her old musty bed. If anyone caught her now, she'd be dead; literally. She unstrapped the bag and withdrew a rectangular object covered in a velvet black cloth. She looked at it in wonder before walking across the room to the rickety little desk in the corner. She retrieved the candle and placed it on a corner, then slowly unwrapped the book.

Vicky Walker stretched precariously and flinched as she pulled at the stitches on her side. Her rib cage, to be exact. She carefully put her arm down as she walked robotically down the hall. She was sleepy, to be sure. She hadn't really slept and when she did she'd awoken suddenly, stifling a scream that had built up in her throat.

Xepher had whined in concern as Vicky had curled up and tried so hard not to sob.

So now she was tiptoeing through HQ at three in the morning, looking for…something. She didn't know, but she needed something to comfort her. She didn't want to wake up her little brother, Allen, and Kanda was definitely out of the equation. He was on edge lately and Vicky was pretty sure he'd try to cut her if she came into his room in the middle of the night.

She turned slightly as she heard a soft whine to see Xepher following her down the hall. "What's the matter, boy?" She asked quietly, smiling. She got down on one knee and scratched behind his large ears. "I thought I told you to go watch Allen."

Vicky had been cautious about her new-found little brother. She figured she was just afraid to lose him again. Either way, both she and Xepher were always with him now, even while he slept. He didn't seem to mind but Vicky wondered how long that would last until he got fed up with her.

She sighed and turned her thoughts to Kanda. She hadn't seen Yuu since she had returned home; no doubt he was mad at her for something or other. Probably because Allen was her younger brother. She had heard from Lenalee that they hadn't gotten along at all since Allen had joined the Black Order.

Vicky flinched as she heard something pound against the floor and whirled around, glaring down the hall as she felt for her other type of innocence: The Hunter. It was a bulky gun, but she liked it. It added a sense of style to what she did. But in this case, she didn't have it. It had been damaged on her last escapade and was given to the science department for repairs.

Xepher growled, fur bristling.

No one there.

Vicky licked her lips unconsciously and hesitated, unsure now. Where was she wandering to? There wasn't anywhere to go at three in the morning really. No one would be up besides the science department and they would be busy. In fact, she was all alone. Better to have Xepher with her just in case. She patted Xepher's head and started for the library anyway. Maybe she could read.

Maybe Lavi would be there.

Vicky tried to shove away this thought before it flourished, but it grew despite her efforts. She'd originally met the Bookman's Apprentice about the same time Lenalee and Yuu did, quickly becoming his friend. He was smart, to say the least, and had an easy smile that lit up his whole face. But by then, Vicky was already off the market. Yuu and her had barely decided it was better to be public about their relationship so by then, everyone knew Vicky wasn't available. That didn't stop her from talking to him, however. It was sad to say, but sometimes Lavi knew things either before Yuu or there was things that the red haired young man was aware of about Vicky that her lover was not. For example, her younger brother. The Bookman's Apprentice was the first to know about it, simply because he was willing to listen. And sometimes, Vicky needed that. Not that Yuu didn't listen, he was just more preoccupied with things occasionally. Or mad at her. Or just mad at everyone. Hey, Kanda was Kanda.

"Vi, is that you?"

Vicky sharply inhaled and almost gave the command for Xepher to invoke when she realized it was merely Lavi. _Speak of the devil…_ She let out the breath she had been holding and smiled. "Oh…Lavi…it's just you…"

"I came to see how you were doing in the infirmary and you weren't there." He raised his visible eyebrow as he approached her. "What're you doing up so late?"

"Coming to see you." She said sheepishly as Xepher woofed softly and almost bowled Lavi over.

"Gah!" Lavi cried out softly and ruffled Xepher's white scruffy neck. "Ya big brute!" He smiled as he seized the wolf's head. "You must've missed me. You haven't left me alone at all today."

At this, Vicky paused and blushed. How awkward to have her parasite-type innocence – a part of her, mauling him like some love sick puppy while she was unconscious. Xepher was indifferent to Yuu, which suited the swordsman just fine. However, Vicky was a bit apprehensive about Xepher's lack of attraction to her stoic significant other.

Lavi straightened up. "So what did you need this fine…" He paused, and then chuckled. "Morning, I guess?"

"Just wanted to talk. I haven't seen you in forever."

"Since before Moriko's other screw up." Lavi smiled.

"You shouldn't be so mean to her." Vicky pouted, her eyebrows slanting down. "She has it hard, you know. No one pays attention to her."

"Is that why she's so loud sometimes?" He said dryly, and then held up his hands defensively as Vicky drew in an angry breath. "Yeah, I know. She does that so somebody will pay attention to her because she's deprived. It's a common disorder."

"Really?" Vicky drew closer, fascinated in spite of herself. Like a moth drawn to a light that will inevitably harm it.

"Oh yeah. In fact, everyone has one disorder or another." Lavi commented offhandly, trying to focus on the fuzzy beast growling at him softly to be caressed as it forced its nose into his hands.

"What disorder do I have?"

Lavi looked up, suddenly nose to nose with the girl he'd always wanted but could never have. He swallowed thickly, his body wired in a way it shouldn't have been. "You…disorder…?" He asked intelligently.

"Mm-hmm." She nodded, smiling.

Was she even aware of what she was doing to him?

"You don't have a disorder." He murmured. "You're per-"

Suddenly the ground started to shake, quickly becoming violent. Bricks started to fall and screams were echoing down the hall; the unearthly kind that grated your ears.

Vicky covered her ears, as did Lavi, and Xepher whined, laying his ears flat against his head and lying on his belly.

"Get closer to the pillar!" Lavi yelled, grabbing Vicky's arm and pushing her up against the pillar, his hand splayed next to her head as he shielded her with his own body.

"Xepher!" Vicky yelled, grabbing Lavi's arm as she stretched her other arm out towards the large white wolf. "He's helpless without his hearing! He's completely blind now!" She said, panicked. "Let me go get him-!"

"No! You'll get hit!" Lavi held his ground. Even as he spoke, Xepher yelped as a brick hit him.

"Please!" Vicky's attempts became more frantic as the ground shook more violently. "Please, I have to save him!" Tears started down her face as brick after brick hit the helpless animal, Xepher's cries and howls reaching above the screeching that had started.

"It'll be okay!" Lavi wrapped his arms around her waist to stop her from running to rescue Xepher and, ultimately, to danger.

She sobbed and turned away from Xepher, grabbing the front of Lavi's shirt as she pressed her face against his collarbone and cried.

Lavi put his cheek on top of her head and watched the howling animal, his face as pained as she probably felt. But if there was anything he knew about earthquakes, is that they didn't last that long. It didn't make sense, however. They were on a floating island for God sake!

Sure enough, the earthquake stopped and people hesitantly ventured out to see the damage as the debris and dust settled. Xepher's whines were the only thing they could hear besides the murmur of voices and the groans of HQ settling.

"Xepher!" Vicky tore out of Lavi's grip and he let her go, watching her dig through the rocks to her fallen companion. His arms hung uselessly at his side, feeling empty without her warmth.

"Xepher! Oh God!" Vicky sobbed in relief as the wolf scrambled out of the rocks, shaking itself of the dust and rocks. "He's alright, Lavi!"

Lavi knelt beside her and looked around, awed at the destruction. They were plunged in almost complete darkness now that the lanterns had been extinguished that lit up the halls. He could barely make a faint outline of the young woman next to him, but Xepher glowed dimly; perks of being made of innocence, Lavi guessed.

"Is everyone okay?" Komui's voice floated to them from down the hall.

They both looked up, searching for him in the dark. "Yes!"

"Is that Lavi and Vicky?" He moved closer, a lantern in his hand. Standing next to him was Kanda and Lenalee.

Yuu walked quickly towards Vicky and she rushed over to him, wrapping her arms around him.

He kissed her fiercely. "Are you alright?" He held onto her tightly.

"Yes. Lavi saved me."

Yuu glanced up at the Bookman's Apprentice and nodded his thanks.

Lavi nodded back, putting his hands in his pocket.

Vicky gasped and pulled back. "Shit! Where's Allen? Is he alright?" She looked worriedly at Komui and Lenalee.

Komui sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses down. "We don't know."

"Xepher! Find Allen!" Vicky called out and pulled away from Kanda as Xepher shot off behind Komui and Lenalee.

Kanda grabbed her hand. "You can't go! Some parts of HQ are unstable!"

"I have to find him, Yuu!" She felt tears build up in her green eyes. "I can't…I can't lose him again…!" She started to hyperventilate. She could still remember that god awful day she had watched her parents abandon him, leaving him to fend for himself and ultimately to his death. A familiar emotional pain built up in her stomach and she almost threw up.

Kanda pulled her close and she didn't fight. He wrapped his arms around her protectively and let her cry weakly into his chest. He knew how tired she was and how she hadn't recovered from taking on the Russian Mafia single-handedly. He also knew how much she hated losing the ones she cared about; everyone did. That's why she got along with Lenalee so well. Both girls would die if it meant saving the ones they loved.

"I'll follow Xepher and find Allen." Lavi volunteered, the words coming out of his mouth before his brain thought up the repercussions of the statement.

"I will too." Lenalee offered.

"No, there could be aftershocks." Kanda said, noting the concerned look on Komui's face dissipate as he spoke. "You stay here and help Chief Komui and Vicky in aiding anyone who needs it. I'll go with _Usa_-Lavi." He let go of Vicky and pressed his lips to her forehead. "Don't do anything stupid, _Koibito_." He murmured against her skin. He let go of her and nodded at Lavi. He may not act like it all the time, but he was constantly concerned about her. This earthquake almost gave him a heart attack when he realized that Vicky could've been hurt.

"Be back with Allen in a bit." Lavi squeezed Vicky's shoulder companionably, smiling at her. He and Kanda took off running where Xepher had gone.

Vicky rubbed at her eyes. "Let's go help people." She said to Komui and Lenalee, fixing a determined look on her face.

They both smiled at her and Lenalee wrapped an arm around her waist, letting Vicky lean on her as they walked.

Moriko watched from the floor above, leaning over the banister and gazing at the drama that unfolded with cold black eyes. Goddamn cockroaches. That's what they all were.

"Are you okay?" A wandering exorcist asked, concerned with the way she seemed completely unfazed by what had happened. This was a sign of shock, after all.

Moriko internally sighed and worked up tears before she turned to him. "I-I'm scared…" She whimpered. "What's going on…?"

"There was an earth quake." He said softly, no doubt concerned even more that she was crying. "I'm just making sure that everyone's okay. Do you need any medical attention?"

Moriko shook her head and the exorcist moved on. She waited until he was gone before letting a small twisted smile play across her lips. "I don't but young Mr. Walker might…" One must do what one must do to ensure victory…

And after all, what good what it do Moriko if Vicky didn't hurt?

Lavi coughed as the collapse of something unstable made him swallow a lungful of dust. "Can you see Xepher, Yuu?"

His taller companion put his foot down on a rock and tried to peer into the dusty murky darkness. There. A flash of white. "Xepher!" He called.

The wolf let out an answering howl, but didn't stop.

"Come on." Kanda turned back to Lavi. "Wherever _Moyashi_ is, he's close." He leapt off the pile of boulders and ran after the wolf, darting through piles of rubble.

Lavi gasped for clean air and coughed again as he stood at the top of the pile Kanda had just jumped off of. He wiped the back of his arm across his forehead and exhaled. "It's all for her, dude." He muttered and slid down the rocks. He jogged to catch up to Kanda, finding the older man kneeling in the rubble as Xepher howled beside him.

"Would you shut up?" Kanda growled at Xepher, who ignored him and continued. "I'm trying to talk to the stupid kid!"

Lavi stumbled over a rock. "He must think Vicky's still coming." He walked over and stroked Xepher's fur until the beast quieted down. "Hey Allen, are you in there?"

Kanda noted the parasite-type innocence's reaction and frowned deeply. This shouldn't bug him this much, but it did. He'd have to see if Xepher would react to him the same way later.

"Yeah!" Allen's voice came out muffled. "I'm okay, but I'm trapped!"

"We'll just blast through and get him out." Kanda stood and reached for Mugen.

"No!" Lavi grabbed his wrist. "If we do that, this whole section will collapse! It's already unstable as it is. Can't you hear that?"

They paused for a second to hear the groaning of splintering wood trying to hold up thousands of pounds of rock.

"Hmph." Kanda jerked his hand away. "Then what do we do?"

"Let me think." Lavi crouched down and leaned in, examining the rubble covered doorway.

Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed onto his shirt.

Lavi yelled.

"No! No! It's okay! It's just me!" Allen yelled over him. "I just wanted to let you know where I was!"

"How'd you get trapped in the first place?" Lavi exhaled in relief and grabbed onto his hand. "By all rights, you should be buried!"

Allen grunted and the groaning sound grew a bit worse, showering the other two with dust. "I invoked my innocence and now my arm is holding up most of it. It should just cave down in my room if I let it go, though."

"So we just need to get you out fast enough that you don't get crushed?" Lavi said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He examined the way the rocks were holding each other up and experimentally removed one.

They all held their breath.

Lavi exhaled when it was obvious it wasn't going to cave. "Okay. Here's the deal. I'm gonna remove the rocks to make a large enough hole to yank you out. But here's the catch; you move your arm, and it'll come down on you. I remove the wrong rock, and everything comes down on me and Yuu-chan here. I'll try to go as quickly as I can. Can you hold out, Allen?"

"I'll try." The younger boy grunted.

"You better do more then try, _Moyashi_." Kanda growled. "You make Vicky cry and I will PERSONALLY bring you back from the grave to kill you again."

Lavi chuckled nervously as he wrapped his hand around another rock. "Now, now you two…It's not quite the right time to be fighting…" He yanked it out and jerked his head up as some dust fell.

The tense atmosphere went on as Lavi kept up his methodical Janga game, searching for the right rocks and slowly widening the hole where Allen's arm was. It seemed to stretch on forever, both Lavi and Kanda jumping if Allen shifted or if the rock Lavi removed produced any kind of sound from above.

Finally Lavi sat back. "There. Think you can get through that?" He peered in at Allen to see him crouched uncomfortably with the boy's overly large hand keeping the rubble at bay.

Allen offered him a smile. "Can do."

"Give me the hand you're not using to keep you alive." Lavi stretched out his own hand.

Allen did so carefully.

Lavi grasped it and turned his head slightly in Kanda's direction. "You'll have to take Xepher out of here, Yuu-chan. He can't hear that well in earth quakes, so we found out."

"I'll smell like dog." Kanda said angrily.

"It's either that, or Allen." Lavi shrugged.

"I'll take the dog." Kanda moved towards Xepher.

"Hey!" Allen said indignantly.

"Listen, here's how it's gonna go down." Lavi instructed. "Kanda's going to get Xepher and head out of here. When he's clear, I'm going to yank you out Allen and we're going to make a beeline for where it's more stable. Sound good?"

"That's your plan?" Kanda scoffed. "You really are an idiot, _Usagi_. What if you die?"

"Got a better one that involves getting Allen out alive?" Lavi smirked. "Vicky won't be pleased if it's all your fault."

"How is she?" Allen asked in concern. "Is she alright?" He shifted a bit and they all gasped as a more alarming bit of debris came down.

"Don't move, idiot!" Kanda hissed. "She's fine and waiting for you!"

"Okay." Lavi took a deep breath. "Go, Kanda."

Kanda grumbled and looked at Xepher. "Do I have to pick it up?"

"He'll follow you as long as Allen here doesn't move." Lavi said, his tone a bit impatient. "Go, Yuu-chan!"

Kanda looked at Xepher, who whined at him and thumped his tail on the ground twice. They both took off running for safety.

Lavi squeezed Allen's hand. "You doing okay, kid?"

"Yeah." Allen said, sounding tired.

"Good. They just left my sight so it shouldn't be long now…"

There was a moment of silence as they contemplated what they were both about to do.

"Are you sure Victoria's okay?" Allen asked, sounding like the kid he was.

"She's just fine, Allen." Lavi said soothingly. "I made sure she was safe when it happened. If anything, she's more in danger of stressing herself to death about you."

"Ugh…" Allen sighed. "How did this even happen?"

Lavi paused. That was a good question. "I don't know…" Everything about this incident seemed to point to foul play. But there had been no akuma attacks against the exorcists in their vulnerable state in the dark after the quake. Perhaps there had been another motive…?

There was another pause as they waited for Kanda and Xepher to get clear, both reflecting on entirely different things.

Lavi exhaled. "You ready Allen?"

"Yeah." Allen nodded in determination.

Lavi repositioned his grip on the younger boy's hand. "One…" He licked his lips as he tensed himself to spring. "Two…" Dust cascaded on him as Allen shifted. "THREE!" He shouted and yanked Allen out of the little alcove.

Dust showered them as rocks started to fall, but Allen made it out safely. However, the falling debris did not stop. Lavi realized, with horror, that the entire section was coming down. "RUN!" He yelled and yanked Allen's arm towards the right direction.

They sped away, tripping over unseen rubbish as they tried to get away from the falling rocks.

Allen cried out as a brick hit his arm.

"Keep running!" Lavi yelled. His breath ached as it pounded out of him, his chest constricting in a fiery pain. God, he could see where the stable section was. If only they could reach it…

The falling section started raining down them with a vengeance and large sections of flooring and wall came hurtling towards their heads. It was a miracle they didn't get hit as they ran desperately. They could see Xepher and Kanda standing, both yelling (or howling, in Xepher's case) desperately for them to hurry.

Allen invoked his innocence, grabbed Lavi with his huge hand, and slung him towards Kanda.

There was a large crash as the unstable section of HQ came down, dust pouring out and enveloping everything like a cloud of suffocation. Finally, the rumbling stopped and everything settled, including the dust.

Lavi hacked out the dust from his lungs, choking for air as he crawled shakily towards the collapsed section. "A…All…en…!" He gasped.

The dust cleared and he heard Allen groan, seeing him tug two fingers of his right hand out from between two rocks. "Damnit…! They're… broken…!" He held up the bloody fingers for Lavi to see, panting.

Lavi blinked and then smiled, laughing breathlessly. "God…! Thought…you were…dead…!" He collapsed on his back.

Kanda stood up, brushing the dirt off his clothes. "Good thing he's not. Now I don't have to kill him."

Xepher woofed and shook the dirt off his fur.

Allen smiled. "Let's…go…want to…see…Vicky…"


End file.
